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<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=052044107-06062007><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>I also share your concerns. Some years ago I switched
from a Motorola phone to a Nokia phone right because (at that time, at least)
the Nokia UI was far superior in features and intuitiveness.
Even today I would never, ever buy a Motorola! <SPAN
class=052044107-06062007><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>To me, GUI
usability is probably the most prominent factor of success in a
product when it comes to sales. You can have tons of features hardwired in
the box, but what's the point if you can't bring them up quickly and easily?
What's the point if they are not really integrated with each other - and
integration is fundamental on a handheld device where interaction is
limited by definition.</FONT></SPAN></FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=052044107-06062007><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN
class=052044107-06062007></SPAN></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=052044107-06062007><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>We're all believing that GTA-02 will be the mass
market product. However, if the Neo's UI can't live up to the competitor's UIs
there'll probably be no mass market at all... apart from the few of us
that like playing with wires, solder and GCC. I guess that's not
exactly what FIC aims at.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=052044107-06062007><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=052044107-06062007><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>Ciao</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=052044107-06062007><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>Michele</FONT></SPAN></DIV><BR>
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader lang=it dir=ltr align=left>
<HR tabIndex=-1>
<FONT face=Tahoma size=2><B>Da:</B> community-bounces@lists.openmoko.org
[mailto:community-bounces@lists.openmoko.org] <B>Per conto di
</B>Fabien<BR><B>Inviato:</B> marted́ 5 giugno 2007 19.15<BR><B>A:</B>
OpenMoko<BR><B>Oggetto:</B> Some thoughts about iphone &
openmoko<BR></FONT><BR></DIV>
<DIV></DIV>Open source software hasn't exactly a great record, when it comes to
GUI usability. The only graphic OSS application with outstanding usability I can
think of is Firefox, and it took them a couple of netscapes and mozillas and
forks and rewrites, all in all a decade, to get there. When you ask better
interface ergonomics to OSS developers, they tend to understand "cramming even
more features" or "put more transparent, 3D bells & whistles". I know I
know, some hugely successful software companies don't know much better...
<BR><BR>OTOH, usability of phones is dreadful even when compared to PC
applications. Apple is clearly going to shake the whole industry by at last
giving to usability the central importance it deserves, for an object we use so
casually. And all other clueless commercial vendors are going to copy the wrong
stuff, thinking it's all about having a black grid of gleaming buttons on a
touchscreen :) <BR><BR>There will be attempts to rip off the iPhone's user
experience on openmoko, and 99%+ of these experiments will be as huge a
failure as their commercial counterparts. But I hope people will realize there
are much more interesting stuff to do than copycat Apple, trying to beat it at
its own game. <BR><BR>There's a good reason why most hackers suck at GUI design:
it doesn't scratch an hitch of theirs. They rather stick to their beloved
command line interfaces: they've a steeper learning curve, but once mastered
they're faster and more powerful. But it won't do the trick on a phone: no
keyboard, tougher usage environment, not the same kinds of interactions... I
hope that such a harder to learn, but eventually faster and more powerful UI
will emerge from openmoko, and I'm really curious to discover what it'll be
like. Apple is seldom beaten when it comes to intuitive UIs, and that's not what
I demand from my phone; both devices don't and shouldn't address the same market
niche. </BODY></HTML>